In recent years, as portable audio player which have been reduced in size and reduced in weight have become widespread, music is coming to be listened to in unprecedented situations. For example, portable audio players are being widely taken outdoors to listen to music while walking, or being used to listen to music while performing sports such as jogging, walking, or the like which are performed in order to maintain health, increase health, lose weight, and so forth.
In this case, in the event that the tempo of the music being played and the tempo of the actions (for example, exercise such as walking, jogging, walking, or the like) of the user (hereafter referred to simply as action tempo or exercise tempo) match, a sense of oneness between the actions and the music can be obtained. Accordingly, a device has been conceived in which the action tempo of the user is detected and the tempo of the music being played is changed according to change in the action tempo, even in cases wherein the tempo of the music being played and the action tempo of the user become mismatched, or the action tempo of the user suddenly changes so that a sensation of oneness of the actions and music can be obtained.
Note that in this Description, terms such as tempo of music, playing tempo of music, and tune tempo, mean the speed of music data at the time of being played, and is the number of beats per minute (BPM: Beat Per Minutes). Also, the action tempo (exercise tempo) of the user specifically is the speed of actions, and means the number of increments (single action (exercise)) of smallest measurable actions of the user per minute, such as for example, in the event that the actions (exercise) of the user are walking or running, this is the number of steps per minute, and in the event that the actions are jumping, the number of jumps per minute.
Also, disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2005-156641 is a device wherein actions or walking pace are obtained from vibrations accompanying actions or step data from walking, with a detector which the user wears on the body, and the playing tempo of the music is changed in accordance with the change. Using such a device allows exercise to be continued comfortably or exercise to be efficiently performed, along with the music being played, and so forth.
Now, the invention described in the above-described Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2005-156641 is for changing the playing tempo of music being played along with the action tempo of the user, and the playing tempo of the music can be constantly made to follow the action tempo of the user. However, since the playing tempo of the music being played is changed, here are cases wherein music is provided to the user of which the tempo is transient in change from beginning to end. Also, the music to be played is generally pre-composed, so it is conceivable that there may be those thereof which are unsuitable for change in playing tempo.
Also, further increase in convenience for the user is desired, such as not only enabling exercise to be continued in ease, but also enabling support for motivation of exercising and comprehension and management of the amount of exercise, by enabling a oneness to be obtained between the music being played and the actions of the user at the time of performing exercise along with music being played.
Further, with regard to support for motivation of exercising and continuation of exercise, there is new demand for functions enabling support for motivation of exercising and continuation of the exercise not only for 1 exercise session performed in relatively short time increments such as in increments of a few minutes, or increments of several tens of minutes, or increments of several hours at the most, but rather for exercise which is preferably continued over a relatively long period, such as in increments of days, increments of weeks, increments of months, increments of years, and so forth.
In light of the above, a first object of the present invention is to provide a device, method, and program for playing audio with further improved convenience, enabling music to be played such that oneness can be obtained with the actions of the user at all times, without giving any unnaturalness such as unpleasant sensations to the user, and it is a second object of the present invention to provide a device, method, and program for enabling support for motivation for not only 1 exercise session in relatively short time increments but also exercise which is preferably continued over a relatively long period, and for continuing such exercise.